Terry College doctoral student finds obesity linked to lower wages

Michael Kofoed, a doctoral student in the Department of Economics at Terry College of Business, hopes to answer the question: Does obesity influence unemployment and wages?

His findings may seem surprising.

“Labor economics tries to understand the interaction between the worker and the employer,” Kofoed said. “The effects linked to obesity and employers is that obesity reduces a worker’s productivity, and any company hoping to be profitable will only pay the employee equal to or less than what they contribute to the firm’s productivity. If I become less productive because I become less healthy due to obesity, the firm logically will pay me less.”